Several waves of tropical moisture moved into portions of eastern KS causing widespread heavy rain. This rain fell on top of already saturated ground, which lead to flash flooding.
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Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS TOP wrote it up.
Several waves of tropical moisture moved into portions of eastern KS causing widespread heavy rain. This rain fell on top of already saturated ground, which lead to flash flooding.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Topeka, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 23, 2:57 PM CST, 2 hours 13 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 357 PM CDT Sat May 23 2015 .SHORT TERM...(This Evening through Sunday) Issued at 357 PM CDT SAT MAY 23 2015 Flooding concerns remain front and center for the next 36 hours. Although mesoscale influences will dictate who receives the greatest amounts of rainfall it still appears that areas roughly along and southeast of a Emporia to Topeka line will see widespread 2 to 4 inches with locally higher amounts possible tonight through Sunday as moisture transport is maximized tonight throughout the area within a environment characterized by PWATs of 1.5 to 1.75". 850mb winds of 40-50kts will be rather uniform across the region with no obvious signs of a boundary at this time however there are signals that a weak wave/meso element across OK could enhance convection and rainfall rates along/east of the turnpike tonight. The more obvious waves will arrive Sunday which should act to back winds and support another round of heavy rains across the eastern third of the area or roughly along and east of highway 75. MUCAPE is fcst to remain modest AOB 500j/kg tonight however given warm rain process and moisture transport rain will still be locally heavy with training expected. Have expanded the flood watch area to include Geary, Riley, Pottawatomie and Nemaha counties given ongoing convection and continued trend of short range models to shift axis of heavy rains a bit further NW. .LONG TERM...(Sunday Night through Saturday) Issued at 357 PM CDT SAT MAY 23 2015 Have increased precip chances/amounts somewhat Sunday evening with somewhat slower trend of ECMWF and GFS Ensembles, though at this point amounts look low, but by this time small amounts could keep flooding going and keeping the Watch through Sunday night. Differences in the handling of the stronger/larger scale upper waves continue in the latest models. The strongest feature still remains well south of the area as it rotates northeast, with more spread in the weaker wave passing through Nebraska Memorial Day and Monday night. Better both lower and upper level forcing appears to stay to the northwest, but in the weak overall flow and mean trough axis in place, will keep chance PoPs going. Instability continues to look rather impressive by mid afternoon with modest shear, giving rise to at least some severe weather potential if storms can form. Precip chances continue for much of the remainder of the week continues. A weak surface trough sags in from the northwest for at least small thunder chances again Tuesday afternoon and evening. Though likely weak, isentropic upglide develops behind the boundary Wednesday into Wednesday night before the next slow moving longwave trough approaches from the west. Moisture turn to the west keeps chances going Thursday night with trough nearing and some potential for a front to sag in around Friday night. Have the highest chances in the latter periods with better overall forcing. Overall weak flow should keep severe weather potential climatologically low, and if repeated convection does occur the main focus could again be flooding. && .AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFs through 18Z Sunday Afternoon) Issued at 1227 PM CDT SAT MAY 23 2015 The next 24 hours is a very tricky forecast period. Bottom line is all terminals will experience IFR GIGS at times generally beginning mid-afternoon today. IFR VIS is not out of the question as precipitation picks up later tonight. Don't think an extended period of rainfall is out of the question, which is why showers stay in the forecast. The possibility of a period of thunderstorms in the local areas does set up this evening with the better window for instability. Very late in the forecast period, the conditions should begin to show some improvement, but have chosen to not add another line in for now as this will be the very tail end of the forecast period and will need further evaluation at the next forecast update. && .TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FLASH FLOOD WATCH through Monday morning FOR KSZ011-012-022>024- 026-036>040-054>056-058-059. && SHORT TERM...Omitt LONG TERM...65 AVIATION...Drake
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 415 PM CDT SAT MAY 23 2015 KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-242115- REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY- POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS- WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON- 415 PM CDT SAT MAY 23 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL...NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE RATHER PERSISTENT AND PRODUCE PERIODS OF MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL. THE HEAVIEST RAIN IS EXPECTED TO BE ALONG AND EAST OF A LINE FROM HERINGTON TO MANHATTAN TO SENECA...AND A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THIS AREA THROUGH MONDAY MORNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. THE THREAT FOR HEAVY RAINFALL AND POSSIBLE FLOODING CONTINUES THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. TOTAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES ARE FORECAST TO BE COMMON...WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS OVER 5 INCHES POSSIBLE. THERE IS ANOTHER CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS IN THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING OF MEMORIAL DAY. SOME OF THESE STORMS COULD BE STRONG TO SEVERE. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... STORM SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TONIGHT. SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT RAINFALL AMOUNTS OVER ONE INCH TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TOPEKA. && MORE DETAILED INFORMATION CAN BE ACCESSED AT... HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/TOP/SITREP
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
530 PM CDT SAT MAY 23 2015
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0529 PM HEAVY RAIN 2 E DOVER 38.96N 95.90W
05/23/2015 M1.00 INCH SHAWNEE KS TRAINED SPOTTER
RAIN FELL IN 15 MINUTES
&&
BYRNEThe Topeka radar (KTWX), 45 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:07 UTC.
6 flood, 6 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Minor flooding of low areas on Dunlap rd at big John creek. Other minor flooding noted throughout Morris county.
Flooding of low water crossing on California rd.
Minor flooding was reported in Pomona.
Minor flooding was reported in Scranton.
Several streets in Carbondale and across the county are flooded.
Water flowing across the road at least 6 inches deep at 173rd and Ratner rd.
Minor flooding was reported in Quenemo.
Water was running over the spillway of the Osage city reservoir and over 4th street verified on social media.
Flash flooding ongoing across all of Lyon county with 15 roads currently impassible. A creek in Americus has flooded several streets in town.
Several county roads flooded though out Osage county.
Flooding ongoing in Coffey county with roads closed in Burlington. At 16th and Angus water was running over the road.
Highway 59 was closed at the railroad tracks in Kincaid.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, May 2015
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 575593, 575594, 575595, 575596, 575600, 575605, 575601, 575608, 575610, 575611, 575613, 575615.